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For Andy Higginson, it was the doughnuts that were symbolic of how far Morrisons had fallen. “There were certain clues that things weren’t right,” the chairman says of his early days at the supermarket.

Since joining the Bradford-based chain two years ago, Higginson has been steering a crack squad of former Tesco directors who have turned Morrisons around from its downward spiral to growing grocery sales faster than any of its Big Four rivals.

“The former management wanted to strip out bakeries and claimed to have made factory doughnuts taste better than shop-bought doughnuts”, the young-looking 59-year-old says. “I just thought, how could this be? I’d much rather have a fresh doughnut.”